Page 92 - Bonhams Image of Devotion Hong Kong December 2, 2021

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A CARNELIAN FIGURE OF BUDDHA A LAPIS LAZULI CARVING OF A BUDDHA
ANCIENT REGION OF GANDHARA, 2ND-5TH CENTURY SRI LANKA, EARLY ANURADHAPURA PERIOD,
3 cm (1 1/8 in.) high CIRCA 5TH CENTURY
6 cm (2 3/8 in.) high
HKD50,000 - 80,000
HKD400,000 - 500,000
犍陀羅 二至五世紀 紅玉髓佛陀像
斯里蘭卡 阿努拉德普勒早期 約五世紀 青金石佛陀像
The heavy robe’s stylized folds and the thin circlet securing the locks
over the ushinisha follow stylistic conventions of Buddha images from In Buddhist material culture, lapis lazuli is revered as one of the ‘seven
the Ancient Region of Gandhara, and in particular the Swat Valley. treasures’ (saptaratna) discussed in Mahayana sutras. This lapidary
For example, compare a turban cockade with a small figure of seated figure depicts Buddha seated in samadhi, a deep meditative state.
Buddha in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (Jongeward, Buddhist Diminutive in scale, though not in character, his broad shoulders
Art of Gandhara, 2018, p.103, no.72) and a Swat stele published in and physiognomy exude a powerful presence. The long fingers
Luczanits (ed.), Gandhara, 2008, p.237, no.183. and the absence of an ushnisha are customary in Buddha images
of Sri Lanka’s Early Anuradhapura Period (377 BCE - 463 CE). The
Provenance carving is redolent of a 5th-century limestone statue of Samadhi
Private Collection, United Kingdom
Buddha, preserved at Mahamevnawa Park in Anuradhapura. Further
stylistic comparisons are published in: von Schroeder, Golden Age of
Sculpture in Sri Lanka, 1992, p.38 no.7; Guy, Lost Kingdoms, 2014,
p.9, fig.9; Lerner & Kossak, The Lotus Transcendent, 1991, p.136,
nos.106 & 107.

Provenance
Private Collection, United Kingdom

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